Late Night Talk
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Future fic. Grant wakes up in the middle of the night to take care of the baby.


**I don't own Agents of SHIELD and never will. No copyright infringement intended.**

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Grant's eyes popped open and he yawned when crying erupted from the bassinet located at the end of the bed. "I got her," he assured his wife when Skye groaned. She had been up with the baby last time their daughter woke up.

"You sure?"

He nodded. "Just go back to sleep." Grant pulled the covers off and walked to the bassinet. He gently scooped the three week old up, and she continued to wail. "Hey, what's got you so upset, huh? Are you hungry or do you need a diaper change, Maia?" He got his answer a few seconds later and headed down to the kitchen to get a bottle before proceeding to sit down in a chair. Grant ran a finger over the baby's face and grinned at her. Despite the fact that he had been awoken at three in the morning, he didn't have it in him to be mad.

"You and Mommy are the loves of my life, Maia. I don't want you to ever forget that," Grant murmured as his daughter continued to suckle down the milk in her bottle. He was still terrified that he'd fuck this up, but Skye and the others always picked him back up when he started to drown in self-loathing, guilt, and fear. "Your mommy telling me that she was pregnant with you is one of the best days of my life. And I'm promising you again that I'm going to be a better father to you than my own. I love you and Mommy more than life itself, Maia." He heard sniffling and looked up to see Skye and Jemma watching them.

"She wakes everyone up and I was hungry," Jemma defended.

Skye laughed at her best friend. "You just wanted to see Grant being adorable with your niece again. Don't lie, Jem."

Maia's eyes started to slip close and he gently took the bottle out of her mouth. He set it down on the counter and sighed. "I don't want to wake her," he explained to his wife.

"She slept through that night of never-ending turbulence. Not sure how, but she did," Skye pointed out. She walked over to him, beaming the entire way.

Jemma's nose crinkled up at the reminder of that night. "That was not one of our better nights."

"You look entranced." Skye ran a hand through Grant's hair as he stared at their sleeping daughter. He leaned into her for a few seconds before soft music reached their ears.

"It seemed like the right time to dance," Jemma explained when they turned towards her. Sometimes when they couldn't sleep, Skye would turn on music which she and Grant would dance to.

"Maia can dance with us now." Skye laughed when her husband slowly stood up, careful not to jostle their daughter, and led her away from the kitchen. Grant started rocking back and forth to keep the baby asleep and pulled his wife into his arms.

Jemma grabbed Grant's cell, found the camera and then snapped a picture of the family of three. This one would definitely be going in Maia's album (that she updated since both Skye and Grant were too exhausted to do much of anything at the moment). "You are adorable."

Skye and Grant continued to sway back and forth, grateful that Maia hadn't woken up. "Thank you for sticking with me, Skye."

She looked up at him. "I told you that you didn't have to thank me anymore, Grant. Everyone deserves a second chance." Garrett had drilled it into him that he didn't deserve one, and he still had a hard time dealing with his issues occasionally despite the weekly therapy sessions attended.

"I never thought this would happen to me but I'm where I belong now. I have a family, a wife and a daughter. Five years ago I was stuck in a living hell and didn't even realize it. But now? I'm really happy." On his bad days, he always wants to curl up in a ball and never leave their room, but he doesn't want to bring the mood down and she already knows that anyway.

Skye sniffled. "Oh, Grant. And as sweet as that is, we really should get a certain little girl to bed or this will end badly for us."

"You're right." Grant knew they'd regret staying up longer than they had to, especially with a newborn.

"Wait a second." Jemma hurried to their sides and leaned down to kiss Maia's forehead before returning to her and Fitz's room.

"You're already spoiled rotten, Maia. Your grandparents and aunt and uncles worship the ground you walk on, but that's okay. We feel the same way." Skye watched as the baby whimpered but stayed quiet. Grant gently deposited Maia in her bassinet and then got back into bed.

"I'll get up next time."

"You sure? I don't mind," Grant told her. He didn't want her to over-exert herself.

She nodded. "We take turns, remember? And her grandparents have already promised they'll get up with her in the morning so we don't have to worry about the 7:30AM wake-up call. We can sleep in for once."

"I'm glad we have them to help us out." He didn't think they would have made it through those first days without the team's – their family's – support.

"So am I." But the conversation stopped there once she realized Grant had fallen asleep. Skye snorted and drifted off herself. She was up at five to change Maia's diaper and then quickly fell back asleep.

When Skye and Grant woke up for good a few hours later, they grabbed a quick shower and then joined everyone else. They weren't surprised to find Melinda cooing at her granddaughter. "Your mommy and daddy finally decided to join us, Maia. Aren't you happy?"

Skye leaned over and grabbed a banana. "You can set her in the swing, you know. There's a reason we have one." Nobody seemed to mind that the Bus had been overtaken by baby items, but they also had a hard time putting Maia down.

"I know, but I just wanted to spend some quality time with her before someone else steals her." Melinda meant Phil and they all knew it. He just shrugged when they stared at him after she said it.

Maia Ward belonged to an unconventional family, but she would always know love. Skye and Grant (and the others) would make damn sure of that. They knew what not to do. But for now, they gathered around the kitchen and chatted about random shit while eating breakfast and planning their next mission.


End file.
